Comics for kids

There was recently a thread on one of the Comicboards forums about child-appropriate comics published by Marvel. Since I have kids, this has been an interest of mine for a while.

I used to get them some of the DC superhero books for younger readers--the Justice League book (when they were fans of the cartoon series) and the Teen Titans book. I was pleased to see that Marvel had begun making kid-friendly titles as well, and will be getting the Avengers one for my 7-year-old (can't say anything about the book yet, since our comics won't arrive until next month).

As for the older one, it's really pretty rare that I won't let her read something that comes in. Okay, Alias is right out! :) But--after some thought--I did let her read the Ultimates hardcover I picked up (the point troubling me there was Hank Pym beating the crap out of the Wasp). And most of the mainstream books I get are, I think, fine, although I do make a point of reading them first. (My judgment is possibly colored by the fact that when I was a seventh-grader I read The Godfather. Big thick paperback. Loaned it to a acquaintance, who ruined it and returned it to me with the spine curled and the back cover gone. Bastard.)

But she prefers books with younger characters, and has been particularly fond of the main DC Teen Titans book (not the kid version). She likes the X-books, and Kitty Pryde is her all-time favorite character. Is less interested in Young Avengers and never seemed to care much for the most recent Legion of Superheroes run, although in general she prefers team books to single-character titles.

And I'm not sure why I feel it's important for my kids to love comics. I'm sure it has something to do with a potential shared interest, but as I think I've said elsewhere, comic books are not something that most kids today have much interest in. In part this is the cost ($2.99 is a lot more of an investment than 40 cents used to be), and in part it's the many other things kids have to spend their time on now--video games and the internet, for two (and I have nothing against either, have spent plenty of my own time indulging in them).

It's certainly true that kids are no longer the first audience for comics--do they even use the Comics Code anymore?--but that was a gradual development, and even back in the day, many of the better books had mature (meaning complex or sophisticated) themes in spots. (And I've never noticed pre-teens making a point of avoiding media--R-rated movies and so forth--that is intended for older folks--if they can get to it, they will.) I'm pretty sure that I'm not the first audience for comics, either--I'm older and less male than that--but I still enjoy them.

So we'll see what we think of the Marvel Adventures line. If the Avengers book goes over well, maybe we'll add one or two of the others (I think they have a Spider-Man and a Fantastic Four). I'm really curious as to what will be different about these books.